Jammu and Kashmir local body election dates announced, voting to be held in 4 phases

This will be the first time electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used in the local bodies polls while migrant voters will be able to vote through postal ballot.

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SRINAGAR: The municipal body elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in four phases through October 8 to 16, State Chief Electoral Officer Shaleen Kabra announced on Saturday News agency ANI reported that the counting shall take place on Oct 20 after all the phases are over. With the announcement, the Model Code of Conduct has come into force in the state. Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Shaleen Kabra also said, "We shall be starting the local bodies elections for municipal bodies first and then the panchayat elections. This will be the first time electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used in the local bodies polls while migrant voters will be able to vote through postal ballot. "The municipal elections will be four phased and it will be held on party-basis," he told reporters. The polling dates are October 8, 10, 13 and 16, and the poll hours for all the phases would be from 7 am to 2 pm. The state has 79 municipal bodies, including the two corporations for the twin cities of Srinagar and Jammu. The CEO said among the 1,145 wards, 90 have been reserved for Scheduled Castes and 38 for Scheduled Tribes, which includes 31 and 13 wards for SC and ST women respectively. In addition, 322 wards have been reserved for women belonging to open category.

Municipal Elections shall be held in 4 phases. Date of polling would be Oct 08, Oct 10, Oct 13 & Oct 16. Counting shall take place on Oct 20 after all the phases are over. Poll hours will be from 7am to 2pm: Chief Electoral Officer Shaleen Kabra #JammuAndKashmir pic.twitter.com/wqUYbIOo1K

— ANI (@ANI) September 15, 2018

The CEO said the announcement for the schedule of panchayat elections will be done separately.